Hot-air engine



(No Modl.) g 4 Sheets-Sheet 1.

. J. H. CHASE. I

HOT AIR ENGINE.

No. 417,857. j I Patefited Dec. 24, 1889.

Arm/mm (No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 2.

J. H. CHASE.

HOT AIR ENGINE.

N0. 417,857. Patented Dec. 24, 1889.

Arm/Mm (No Model.) 4 SheetsSheet 3. JWH. CHASE.

HOT AIR ENGINE.

Patented Dec. 24, 11889.

INVENTOR WITNESSES @6434 (No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 4.

J. H. CHASE.

HOT AIR ENGINE. No. 417,857. Patented Dec. 24, 1889.

WITNESSES:

A TTOR/VELY UNITED STATES,

PATENT O FICE...

JEROME H. CHASE, OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK.

HOTI-AIR ENGINE.

SPECIFICETION forming part of Letters Patent No; 417,857, dated December24, 1889.

Application filed May 17, 1889. Serial No. 311,100- (No model.)

To all whom it m ay concern.-

Be it known that I, JEROME H. CHASE," of

Bufialo, in the county of Erie and State of New York, have invented anew and Improved Hot-Air Engine, of which the following is a full,clear,- and exact description.

The object of the invention is to provide a new and improved hot-air'engine which is simple and durable in construction and very effectiveand double-acting in operation.

The invention consists of an engine connected with a h'ot-air reservoir,a heater located under the reservoir, a furnace for heatand details andcombinations of the same, as

will be fully described hereinaftelgxand then I pointed out in theclaims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part ofthis specification,

in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts inall the figures.

' Figure 1 is aside elevation of the improve ment.

Fig. 2 is a planview of the same. Fig. 3 is an end elevation of thesame. Fig. 4 is an enlarged sectional side elevation of theair-compressor. I Fig. 5 is anenlarged'sectional plan view ofthecooler.Fig.6 is an enlarged sectional sideelevation ofthe furnace, heater, andreservoir on the line a: m of Fig.7; and Fig. 7 'is'a sectional endelevation of the same on the line y y of Fig. 6.

The improved hot-air engine is provided with an ordinary engine A,comprising a cylinder B and hot-airchest 0, operating in conjunctionwith the said cylinder, which latter is provided with the ordinarypiston connected in the usual'manner with the main driving-shaft D. isprovided with suitable mechanism for imparting a sliding motion to theordinary slidevalve heldin the chest C5 .1, Into the hot-air chest 0leads a pipe E, provided with a valve E, and connecting with the upperend of a hot-air reservoir F, below which is located the heater G,un'derwhich is held the furnace H, the latter as well as the heater and thereservoir being inclosed The main driving-shaft D the top of the same,Figs. 6 and 7. The bot-.

tom F of the said reservoir F connects with the front end of the casingI and terminates at the ends of the said plates F.

The furnace-H is provided with the usual grate-bars H, belowwhich isarranged the ash-pit H the furnace H and in its ash-pit H, as is plainlyshown in Figs. 3 and 6. Y

pipe J, which extends upward and connects by a discharge-valve K withone end of the air-compressor K, arranged beside the cylinder B. On theother end of the air-compressor K is held a discharge-valve K openinginto a'pipe L, provided with a valve L and leading .into.tl1e ash-pit'fi'of the furnace H. The pipes L and J are connected with each other byapipe N, provided with The usual doors are formed on Into the front endof the heater G opens a avalve N, said pipe N opening into the pipe Lbetween the ,valve L and the discharge- The cylinder of theair-compressor K is provided with the usual piston K carrying apiston-rod K connected at its outer end with a post K projecting fromthe crosshead of theengine A, so that when the latter is in operation itimparts a sliding motion to the piston In the heads of" the cylinder; ofthe air-compressorK are also arranged the inlet-valves O and O, of whichthe former opens'into a pipe O and the latter opens into a pipe. 0provided with a valve 0 The pipes O and 0 both admit air from a pipe P,extending downward into a closed reservoir Q, located inside of a coolerR, arranged on the outer end of the cylinder B directly above the casingI. The cooler R is provided -.with a water-inlet pipe R, connected witha suitable source of water-supply and provided with a valve R From thetop of the cooler furnace ll.

R extends a faucet R for discharging the water after ithas been heated.The reservoir Q opens into a pipe S, extending upward into the open air,so that the air-compressor draws fresh air into the cylinder when inoperation.

The cylinder 13 of the engine A discharges into an outlet-pipe T,leading to the outside and provided with a valve T. Directly below thevalve T is connected a pipe U, also provided wit-h a v lve U, anddischarging into a room to be heated by hot air. The inlet-pipe E of theengine A is provided with the usual governor Y, operated from the maindriving-shaft I) of the engine A. A pipe W leads from one end of thehot-air reservoir F, and is provided with an exhaust-valve V to preventan excess of hot air in the said reservoir F.

The operation is as follows: A fire is started in the furnace II on topof the grate-bars H, so that the air naturally present in the hotairreservoir F is rapidly heated by the heat from the furnace ll radiatingfrom the plates F, extending in the said reservoir F. When the pressurein the reservoir F is sufiicient, (which may be determined by a gage notshown in the drawings,) the valve E is opened, so that the hot airpasses into the hot-air chest 0 and from the latter into the cylinder13, so that the piston in the same is moved forward and backward in amanner similar to the movement of a horizontal steam-engine, whereby themain driving-shaft D is rotated. The exhaust from the cylinder B passesthrough the pipe T and may be discharged into the open air when thevalve T is openedror when the latter is closed and the valve U is openedthe exhaust of hot air may pass through the pipe U into a room in orderto heat the same, thus fully utilizing the exhaust hot air. The motionof the engine A imparts a forward ,and backward sliding motion to thepiston K in the air-compressor K, so that air is drawn into the saidcylinder through the pipe 1 and the branch pipes O and O. The air drawn.into the air-compressor is pure fresh air derived from the outside, andthe said air is also cooled by passing through the reservoir Q,surrounded by cold water in the cooler R. The air from theair-compressor is discharged through the valv s K and K into the pipes'J and L, of which the latter leads the air into the ash-pit I1 of thefurnace H, so that a current of air is passed under and through thegrate-bars ll into the burning fuel to aid combustion. The smoke andgases arising in the furnace ll are carried off through a suitable pipeleading from the said furnace. The compressed and discharged air in thepipe J passes from the latter into the heater G,'in which it is heatedby the heat of the After passing through the heater G it passes into thereservoir F, and from the latter through the pipe E into the hot-airchest (1, as before described.

When it is desirable that no air should be supplied to the ash-pitll",the operator closes the valve 0 in the pipe so that one end of thecylinder of the air-compressor K will not receive a supply of air, andconsequently no air will be discharged through the discharge-valve K?into thepipe L. hen the valve N in the pipe N is opened, the valve L inthe pipe L is closed, and vice versa. \Vhen the valve N is closed andthe valves L and O are opened, then the air from this end of thecylinder of the air-compressor K passes to the ash-pit H as beforedescribed. When, however, the valve L is closed and the valve N is leftopen, then the air from this end of the cylinder is discharged throughthe pipe N into the pipe J, whereby all of the com- ;pressed air of theair-compressor K passes to the heater G.

This is done when an extra supply of compressed air is needed for theheater to give increased power, and no air is required for .the furnaceto aid the same in the combustion of its fuel. The arrangement of thepipes and valves just described enables the operator to increase ordiminish the supply of cold condensed air to either the heater or thefurnace.

It will be seen that in this engine the motive agent used is theatmospheretaken in a perfectly natural state and subjected to a processwhich first rapidly cools it and then condenses it and forces it intoaheater heated by the intense heat of the furnace, so that the air israpidly heated and furnishes a power which is utilized for drivingvarious kinds of machinery. It will further be seen that this enginedoes not use-any gas or other products of combustioni as a portion ofthe power, but only uses hot air which is taken in a pure state and iskept pure throughout the operation; also, that the air is received anddischarged continuously during the operationof the engine. It willfurther be seen that the engine A is double-acting instead ofsingle-acting, as is the case with other engines of this kind; and itwill also be seen that by means of the pipes and their valves con-- Iheating with the air-compressor the airpumping capacity of theengine isplacedentirely under control, whereby the operator is enabled toincrease or diminish the power at will by throwing a greater volume ofair into the heater, which also has the effect of greatly lessening theloss of power caused by pumping the air, so as to balance or equalizethe pressure on both sides of the piston of the airpump. It furtherenables the operator to increase the power by getting a strong sidedraft through the pipe L directly into the furnace when necessary.

The cooler is so constructed that air drawn from the outer atmosphere tofill the vacuum naturally created by the operation of the aircompressoris made to pass in a very thin broad sheet between metal plates near thebottom of along vessel containing cold water, so that the air is rapidlycooled. The air is then rapidly heated [by being made to pass through alow heater located directly above the furnace. The air then passes intoa reservoir, where it is still further heated by means of metallicplates which extend from the top of the furnace, thus directlyconducting the intense heat of the furnace into the reservoir itself,thereby causing the air to receive considerable additional heat, andalso to retain its heat in the reservoir all the time that the furnaceis in operation, Whether the engine itself .is in operation or not. Thismakes the engine much more certain in its action, as the reservoirreceives a constant,- supply of heat through its metallic plates and atthe same time gets a steady supply of air from the outer atmosphere, andis always filled with air.

As pure outof-door air is pumped into the engine and no prod'iicts ofcombustion of other things injurious to health are allowed to minglewith it at any time the air after having done the work may be utilizedfor heating rooms by means of thepipe U, before described. By thearrangement of the pipes U and T and their valves U and T the operatoris enabled to let the air of the exhaust escape out of doors or to useit for heating, as above described. The air is thus taken in, aperfectly pure state and is very rapidly cooled, condensed, and heated,the power being proportionate toyt-he effectiveness of the means used toaccomplish these results. This is done by taking a quantity of air inits coolest'and most condensed state and suddenly heating it to as higha degree of temperature as can be obtained and keep ing it stored atthis high degree of temperature until utilized for the work.

The reservoir Q may be made in several sections connected with eachother, and 10-. cated one above the other, if desired. The pipe J,instead of entering the heater G-di rectly, may be first entered in acoil under the bottom Gthat is, the top of the furnace I-I. e

Having thus fully described my invention", I claim as new and desire tosecure by'L'etters Patent- 1. In a 'hot-air engine, the combination,with the ordinary cylinder, piston, andchest, a hot-air reservoirconnected withrthe chest, and a furnace for heating said reservoir, ofan air-compressor having a cylinder separate from the engine-cylinderand a piston oper- '.ated from said engine,an air-inletin thecompressor-cylindena discharge-channel leading from the said cylinder tothe hot-air reser- 7voir to supply the same with fresh air, and a seconddischarge-channel leading. to the furnace.

2. A hot-air engine comprising an ordinary engine, a hot-air reservoirconnected with the chest of the said ,enginea heater located under' thereservoir,'a furnace for heating the said heater and reservoir, anair-compressor operated from' the said engine and adapted to dischargeinto the said furnace and the said heater, and an air-cooler for coolingthe air admitted to thesaid air-compressor, substantially as shown anddescribed. r

3. The combination, with the furnace, of a heater G, the bottom of whichis formed by the furnace-top,a hot-air reservoir F, the bottom F ofwhich forms the top of the said heaterGand terminates near one endthereof; and the metallic plates F, extending from the furnace-top G. upthrough the top of the heater G to the upper end of the reservoir,substantially as set forth.

at. In a hot-air engine, the combination, with an engine utilizing hotair as a motive power, of an exhaust-pipe leading from the said engine.and provided with a valve, and a-pipe connected with the saidexhaust-pipe below its valve and leading into a room to be heated,substantially as shown and described. 5. In a hot-air engine, thecombination, with an engine utilizing hot air as a motive power, of anexhaust-pipe leading from the said engine and provided with a valve, apipe'con'nected with the said exhaust pipe below its valve and leadinginto a'room to be heated,and a valve held in the said second? namedpipe,subst-antially as shown and described. A

B. In a hot-air engine; a furnace, a heater located above the saidfurnace, and an airreservoir into which'opens saidheater, in combinationwith anair-compressor provided with the usual inlet and dischargevalves,

and pipes leading from the said dischargevalves into the ash-pit of thesaid furnace and into the said heater, substantially as shownanddescribed. 7

7'. In a hot-air engine, a furnace, a heater located above the saidfurnace, and an air- Y reservoirinto which opens said heater,incombination with an air-compressor provided withthe usual inletanddischarge valves,

pipes leading from-the said discharge-valves into the ash-pit of thesaid furnace and into the said heater, and a branch pipe connecting thesaid discharge-pipes with each other and provided with a valve,substantially as shown and described. I V

8. In a hot-air engine, a furnace, a heater located above the saidfurnace, and an airreservoir into which opens said heater, incombination with an air-compressor provided with the usual inlet anddischarge valves, pipes leadin 'fromthe said discharge-valves into theash-pit of the said furnace and into the said heater, a branch pipeconnecting the said discharge-pipes with each other and provided with avalve, ahd a valve held in one of the said discharge-pipes,substantially as shown and described.v

9. In a hot-air engine, thelcombination,

with an air-compressor provided withv the usual inlet-valves,. of pipesopening into the said. inlet-valves, a main pipeinto which opens saidtwo inlet-pipes,a receptacle in ov I which opens said main pipe, saidreceptacle 1 being in communication with the outer air, and a coolercontaining the said receptacle and adapted to receiveacharge of coldwater, substantially as shown and described.

10. In a hot-air engine, the combination,

with an air-compressor provided with the usual inlet-valves, of pipesopening into the said inlet-valves, a main pipe into which a valve heldin one of the air-inlet pipes, substantially as shown and described.

11. In a hot-air engine, a furnace, a heater located directly above thesaid furnace, and an air-reservoir into which discharges said heater, incombination with an air-compressor discharging into the ash-pit of thesaid furnace and also discharging into the said heater, substantially asshown and described.

JEROME II. CHASE.

Witnesses:

NATHAN L. TANNER, WM. N. LIIOMMEDIEU, J 1'.

